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“The most alarming method that probably does the most damage in one fell swoop is the purchasing of motor carrier numbers to commit various types of cargo theft,” said Scott Cornell of Travelers. (South_agency/Getty Images)

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As technology systems helped advance collaborative freight movements among brokers, carriers and shippers, thieves also have targeted the sector as an area ripe for fraud.

“Since the COVID pandemic, this ­issue of freight fraud has just exploded within the industry,” said Chris Burroughs, CEO of the Transportation Intermediaries Association.

Data analytics company Verisk Cargo­Net in its 2024 supply chain risk trends analysis reported that cargo theft activity across the United States and Canada reached unprecedented levels in 2024, with 3,625 reported incidents representing a 27% increase from 2023.

The estimated average value per theft rose to $202,364, up from $187,895 in 2023, CargoNet said. The types of cargo targeted can vary, influenced by business, industry or consumer trends, or by simple opportunity: It was stolen because it was there.

Engine oils, fluids, solar energy products and energy drinks were frequent targets in 2023; raw and finished copper products, consumer electronics such as audio equipment and high-end servers, and cryptocurrency mining hardware were frequent targets in 2024, Cargo­Net reported.

It also noted increased targeting of consumables, such as avocados and nuts; personal care products, such as cosmetics; and vitamins and supplements, especially protein powder.

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(Transport Topics and Getty Images)

Trailer burglaries and full-trailer theft have been recorded at elevated levels, particularly in major metropolitan areas, such as Los Angeles, Dallas-Fort Worth, Atlanta and New York City, according to CargoNet.

“The data suggests an evolving and increasingly sophisticated threat landscape in cargo theft, with criminal enterprises demonstrating tactical adaptability in both their methods and target selection,” CargoNet said in its report. Such activities are expected to continue in 2025, “with organized criminal enterprises expected to maintain their aggressive targeting of supply chain vulnerabilities.”

Types of Theft

Industry groups such as TIA and the Transported Assets Protection Association discuss cargo theft and fraud using the same terminology as the FBI, U.S. attorneys and other law enforcement agencies.

“Straight cargo theft,” according to an FBI webpage, refers to cargo stolen from trucks at truck stops, parking lots, roadside parking, drop lots and other sites where cargo is left unattended; “strategic cargo theft” involves the use of fraud to trick shippers, brokers and carriers into handing loads over to thieves instead of the legitimate carrier; other strategic cargo theft includes identity theft, “fictitious pickups,” account takeovers, double-brokering scams and fraudulent carriers, as well as a combination of all of the above.

The FBI further identifies cyber cargo theft, involving theft including “phishing emails that install Trojan horse malware granting access to a company’s systems for thieves to retrieve sensitive data. Thieves then use this information to print out copies of legitimate shipping paperwork they can use to commit fictitious pickups.” And pilferage cargo theft is “when criminals alter the bill of lading and pilfer small amounts” from a truck.

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“The most alarming method that probably does the most damage in one fell swoop is the purchasing of motor carrier numbers to commit various types of cargo theft,” said Scott Cornell, national practice lead for transportation for insurance company Travelers, Cornell, a crime and theft specialist and the chairperson of TAPA, said that it became apparent that organized ­cargo theft groups were purchasing MC numbers by the hundreds. “Since then, it has developed into purchasing them by the thousands,” he said.

When the impostor is being vetted, “they look completely legitimate,” Cornell said. The theft rings bid on loads and steal them as many times as they can, Cornell said, before that MC number becomes known as fraudulent.

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Zak Bowyer, vice president of sales support operations for Total Quality Logistics, observed that sale of MC numbers often comes down to a point of education.

“You might have a small carrier with a very old MC number that is retiring, going out of business. He might be approached [by a prospective buyer],” he said. “So they think they’re selling their business, and the MC number just goes with the business.”

Sometimes the email address and phone numbers become part of the deal, too, Bowyer noted.

“That allows the criminals to effectively just step directly into the skin of that trucking company and any network [in which] that trucking company is already validated.”

Stopping the Threat

Load board operators and other players in trucking said they plan to or have implemented tighter procedures to protect carriers, brokers and shippers from fraudsters.

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The threat of fraud via technological skulduggery puts a premium on identifying the legitimacy of participants, and that in turn “adds time, which slows things down, making items more expensive,” said Brent Hutto, Truckstop’s chief relationship officer. “It doesn’t help anybody’s bottom line.”

He added that the need to vet participants adds complexity.

“It used to be that you only looked at two or three pieces of data to figure out if a carrier or a broker is good in the marketplace,” Hutto explained.

Once a straight theft or a fraud becomes known, responding immediately is critical, Hutto and others said. Fraud doesn’t hurt only the bottom line of players in trucking, Hutto noted. The harm extends to relationships with customers and the cost of goods to market.

“As soon as you discover that it’s happened, you need to report it where it happened” — in the local jurisdiction so that law enforcement with authority in the area is aware and can respond,” Hutto said, adding that it is important to notify all parties as soon as it occurs.

“One of the biggest problems is [that] a carrier or broker tries to figure it all out for themselves before they let anybody know,” he said. “That’s the wrong thing to do.”

Truckstop introduced Risk Factors Advanced, a carrier-vetting solution in November. In the spot market, where Truckstop operates, “the better freight moves in about 60 seconds — off the load board [and] on to a carrier” that then works with a broker, Hutto said.

Load board operator DAT Freight & Analytics launched password-less authentication, designed to enhance protection for users. The move is meant to address identity theft and compromised logins. “It’s that user with a password that’s literally P-A-S-S-W-O-R-D,” said Jeff Hopper, DAT’s chief customer and marketing officer . “We still have a lot of those people, and that’s not safe.”

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Brian Gill, DAT’s chief technology officer, said companies that already are using a single sign-on when they log in to their corporate Google or Microsoft accounts can automatically log in to the DAT platform without typing in a new set of credentials.

“The place that the fraudsters start is by attacking credentials,” Gill said. “If you take the credentials out of that value chain, it’s infinitely more difficult for them.”

Hopper said DAT also recommends that carriers use a factoring company, noting that such companies “verify all parties involved because they’re on the hook to make that payment.” He said DAT works with the freight factoring company OTR Solutions.

Tools of Verification

New tools for brokers and carriers to see information about each other have been added to enhance trust and confidence, Hopper said. For that reason, DAT encourages users to keep critical information, such as insurance certificates, MC data and addresses, up to date. “All of those things make a carrier … more attractive to a broker,” Hopper noted. “When there’s missing information or suspicious-looking information and gaps, it’s always a flag.”

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In December, DAT acquired Trucker Tools, a digital load-tracking and freight-matching service. It added a companion set of tools that enables verification that the correct truck is carrying a particular load and then tracks its progress, Gill and Hopper said.

GenLogs, a company that was established in 2023, offers Freight Intelligence, a platform designed to help brokers, shippers and MCs coordinate on loads and reduce the risk of fraud and theft. GenLogs operates a network of sensors along freight lanes and works with state governments to facilitate installation of the sensors, Joyce said. The sensors contain three HD cameras that capture front, side and rear views of passing tractor-trailers, providing visual verification of truck locations as a way to help authenticate carrier activity.

In February, GenLogs announced a partnership with Highway, a company whose technology is designed to help brokers identify and vet carriers for compliance. Shippers and freight brokers “can defend against the fraud and the theft happening in this industry if [they’re consistently] dealing directly with good carriers,” Joyce said.

Learning the Law

In its annual analysis, CargoNet observed that theft-by-deception schemes drew media attention throughout 2024, but traditional cargo theft remained prevalent.

When cargo theft cases meet the federal prosecution threshold, the FBI said, it investigates through collaboration with the private sector and federal, state and local law enforcement partners.

If what is stolen is worth at least $5,000, and it is taken across state or international borders, the theft becomes a federal offense, according to information on the website of Eisner Gorin, a criminal law firm in Los Angeles.

In cases of fraud, there is no minimum threshold amount, Eisner Gorin said. The law firm noted, “Internet activity is always treated as having taken place across state lines. Any theft that involves [use of] computers is usually treated as interstate transport of stolen property.”

The FBI’s website literature on cargo theft suggests that trucking industry players research contact information and company information thoroughly through FMCSA, internet search engines and third-party vetting services.

“Work closely with shippers to confirm positive identities of drivers at the point of pickup — including driver information, truck and trailer identifier information — and use a secure pickup number for security measures,” the FBI recommends. “When using online load boards, exercise increased caution and due diligence to verify the identities of people and companies you are contracting with.”

FMCSA has been working to implement multifactor authentication to enhance information security, a number of trucking executives noted. The implementation date for MFA was moved from Oct. 29, 2024, to December 2024. Burroughs of TIA also noted that FMCSA is expected to launch a modernized registration system “to clean up who’s coming into the industry. They’re using this very antiquated registration system.”

Transportation intermediaries in the trucking industry are licensed by ­FMCSA as brokers or freight forwarders. Under the new system, it is expected that applicants will be required to submit personal identity documentation, including a picture, and they will be subject to a background check, Burroughs said. Additionally, FMCSA is expected to establish background checks on businesses seeking to act as brokers and carriers.

“We don’t know the timing of those things,” he added, “so we’re waiting.”